I’m not sure if it’s because of my Middle Eastern background (figs are said to have originated there) but while I’m not generally a lover of fruit, I simply adore figs and can’t get enough.

So in that short window during late summer when they come into season, I make the most of them!

Here are 5 of my favourite ways to eat them:

1. Fresh and as is.
2. For brunch with some prosciutto, goats or ricotta cheese, a drizzle of EVOO and a good crack of black pepper.
3. In a rocket salad with some blue cheese and walnuts and balsamic olive oil dressing.
4. For breakfast chopped into some yoghurt with some cinnamon, buckinis and a handful of nuts and seeds.
5. My new recipe for Honeyed Fig Cheesecake Slice. The beauty of this recipe is that once fig season is over you can replace figs with any of your favourite fruits. My personal favourites are fresh berries, chopped or sliced mango, or passionfruit.

If you’re looking for more recipe inspiration, take a look at my new recipe ebook which is getting rave reviews, Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes.

It’s packed with 40 delicious nut-free, refined sugar free sweet and savoury recipes which have all been kid-tested and approved!

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

Spelt flour
Rapadura sugar
Sea salt
Vanilla powder
Raw Honey
Cinnamon

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Honeyed Fig Cheesecake Slice

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

Sweet Short Crust Pastry

• 1 cup spelt flour
• 100 grams butter chilled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon rapadura sugar
• pinch sea salt
• 1/4 cup ice water 40 grams

Cheesecake Filling

• 125 grams cream cheese
• 125 grams marsrcapone cheese
• or you can just use just 250 grams either marscapone or cream cheese
• 1/4 cup rapadura sugar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice optional
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest optional
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Fig Topping

• Around 5 medium figs halved
• 1 tablespoon honey
• Cinnamon

Instructions

Directions Sweet Short Crust Pastry

• Pop the spelt flour, butter, sugar and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
• Keep running the food processor and pour the ice water through the feed tube until the mixture and keep processing until a ball of dough forms.
• Pop the dough into a bowl and refrigerate for around half an hour .
• When ready to cook, preheat oven to 175 C and grease and line a 19cm x 19cm square tin with baking paper.
• Flour your kitchen surface and roll out the dough to fit the tin.

Directions Cheesecake Filling

• Whisk together the cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, rapadura sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla extract.
• Scoop the cheesecake batter on top of the pastry then cook in oven for 30-40 minutes or until cheese is set and dough is lightly golden. Allow to cool.

Directions Fig Topping

• You have two options here. You can slice up some fresh figs and arrange on top of the cheesecake slice and drizzle with honey. Or, halve the figs, place in a baking tin, sprinkle over some cinnamon, drizzle over the honey and grill for a couple of minutes. Once cool arrange on top of the slice.
• Put slice in fridge to further set.

Notes

Replace fig toppings with your favourite fruit. Fresh berries or mango make a perfect topping.

If you make this recipe please do take photos and send them to me.

If you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek. Otherwise feel free to pm me your photos via Facebook. I get a total kick out of seeing you bring my recipes to life. 

And remember, if you haven’t already, grab your copy of Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes here.

Other similar recipes you might like are Raspberry Swirl Slice and Apple Crumble Slice.

Bren x

I’ve been a busy Lizzy creating recipes for my upcoming lunchbox ebook (we start shooting it next week, eeek!) but with an abundance of lemons and poppyseeds, I decided it was time to create a new simple cake recipe for the blog while I was at it.

This cake is deliciously tangy and lovely and moist due to the yoghurt and olive oil.

It’s bright, tangy taste pairs perfectly with a good dollop cream and sweet, tart berries.

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

Spelt flour
Baking powder
Desiccated coconut
Rapadura sugar
Olive oil
Vanilla powder

Print

Lemon Yoghurt Poppyseed Cake

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 2 cups spelt flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup desiccated coconut
• 2-3 tablespoons poppyseeds
• ¾ cup rapadura sugar
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup yoghurt
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• zest of 2 lemons
• 1 tsp vanilla essence

Notes

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius
Grease and line a loaf tin or square tine with baking paper
Place the flour, baking powder, coconut, poppy seeds and rapadura sugar into a large bowl and mix to combine creating a well in the centre.
Place the oil, eggs, yoghurt, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla into a jug and whisk to combine.
Pour the wet ingredients into the well of the dry and mix until just combined
Bake for 40-50 minutes or until a skewer inserted removes cleanly. Allow to cool for 5 minutes or so in the tin before removing it to cool completely on a wire rack.
Best served with cream and berries.

If you know someone who could use some wholefood recipes please share this recipe with them. Feel free to share my FREE breakfast ebook below  too : – )

If you make my recipes please take photos and send them to me, or if you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek or #brendajanschek,  I’d love to see what you make!

Here are a couple other easy cake recipes you might like – Cardamon Spice Cake or my Gluten-Free Brownie Cake.

Bren x

Don’t get me wrong.

I love nothing more than a good old cooking and baking session in the kitchen when time is on my side.

But let’s face it, those times can be few and far between for us working mummas.

Which means I’m always on the lookout for short cuts in the kitchen.

When you can throw a handful of ingredients into a bowl, mix it around, roll it into balls, and stick it in the fridge, life starts to feel easier.

The inspo for these delicious balls of goodness came because my gal oh so does love ‘licking the bowl’.

Always proclaiming how much more she loves my Anzac Biscuits, before they go into the oven.

So why don’t I knock out an entire cooking step I thought, and do the raw thang using a few of our favourite ingredients?

And the No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Ball was born and they make a perfect little after-school energy snack or mama afternoon snack and when you’re in the heat of summer and it’s too hot to turn the oven on!

Print

No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls

Prep Time 5 minutes

Servings 15

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/4 cup shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup raw honey add a little more if needed
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil melted
• 1/4 cup dark choc chips or chopped 70% dark chocolate
• pinch sea salt

Instructions

• Throw all the ingredients into a food processor, except the choc-chips, and blend up to your desired consistency. We like ours not too smooth, just with a bit of texture left.
• If consistency is too dry to roll, add more melted coconut oil
• Once blended, add dark chocolate chips and fold through
• Pop a tablespoon of the mixture into the palm of your hand and roll into a ball
• Once you have rolled all the mixture store the balls in the fridge

Notes

This recipes should make 10-15 balls depending on size.

There are more wholefood snack recipes in my Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes ebook.

If you make my recipes please take photos and send them to me, or if you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek. I get a total kick out of seeing you make my recipes.

Here are a couple other No Bake recipe ideas you might like – Raw Cacao Balls and these Protein Balls for Busy Women.

Bren x

Print

Nana's Coconut & Raspberry Slice

Cook Time 30 minutes

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

Base

• 1/3 cup rapadura sugar
• 100 gms butter
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups wholemeal spelt flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• pinch sea salt

Middle layer

• 1/2 cup raspberry jam or see alternative in notes

Topping

• 1 cup desiccated coconut
• 2 tablespoons rapadura sugar
• 1 egg

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 175 degress and grease a 20 x 20 cm baking tin with butter and line with baking paper.

Base

• Beat together butter and sugar for 2 minutes then add egg and beat until just mixed through.
• Stir together spelt flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
• Add the flour mix into the butter mix and stir until just combined.
• Press this into the prepared pan.

Middle layer

• Spread a thin layer of raspberry jam onto the base, you don't want it too thick otherwise it can make the slice a little soggy.

Top layer

• Pop the desiccated coconut, sugar and egg into a small bowl and whisk together with a fork.
• Gently spread the mixture on top of the raspberry layer.
• Pop into the oven for 30 - 40 minutes (check after 20 minutes and rotate the pan). The slice is ready once the top is golden.

Notes

Make your own raspberry jam by popping one cup of frozen rapsberries with 1 tablespoon maple syrup or rapadura sugar into a saucepan on a low heat, stirring and mashing up the berries as you go.
Remove from heat and stir through 1 tablespoons of chia seeds which will thicken up the jam.
Allow to cool before spreading onto the base of the slice.

If you know someone who could use some healthy dessert inspo, please share this recipe with them!

Please take photos and send them to me, or if you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek. You know I get a kick out of seeing you make my recipes.

Here are a couple other classic healthy treat recipes ideas you might love – Jam Drops and Raspberry Swirl Slice.

And if you haven’t done so already, grab a copy of my Free Breakfast recipe ebook below.

Enjoy!

Bren x

So in usual Brenda style I set out to make the healthier version while the kids doubted I’d be able to match the tastiness (without all the sugar).

Lo and behold!

The kids went cray cray over my version, popped them in their lunch boxes each day, and have already asked me to make them again, and again …

These bars are so good that I just had to put this recipe into my Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes ebook  which is packed with 40 delicious nut-free, sweet and savoury wholefood recipes your kids will love! Grab you copy here.

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

Rapadura or coconut sugar
Spelt flour
Baking powder
Honey or rice malt syrup

Print

Orange Poppy Seed Bars

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 165 grams butter softened
• 1/2 cup rapadura or coconut sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups spelt flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 cup poppy seeds soaked in 4 tablespoons orange juice
• ICING
• 150 grams cream cheese
• 1-2 tablespoon honey or rice malt syrup
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 2 teaspoons orange zest

Instructions

• Grease and line a slice pan with baking paper
• Preheat oven to 175 degrees
• Pop butter and sugar into a bowl and beat with an electric mixture until pale and creamy (1-2 minutes)
• Add one egg in at a time, beat well
• Add in the poppy seed/orange mixture and stir
• Add flour and baking powder and fold in
• Pour into the slice pan
• Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean
• Cool in the tin for 10 minutes
• Carefully turn onto a cooling rack
• Ice once completely cool
• ICING - simply pop all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth
• Using a butter knife spread icing onto cooled cake
• Slice into bars
• I stored them in the fridge

If you know someone who could use some lunch box inspo, please share this recipe with them!

And please take photos and send them to me, or if you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek

Remember to check out Easy Wholefood Lunchbox ebook here.

You might also like these Oat Seed and Date Bars or this Muesli Slice. Both also make great lunch box fillers.

Bren x

Which will keep you full and satisfied all morning long!

I didn’t add any sweetener to the recipe because the combination of coconut milk, vanilla and cinnamon makes it sweet enough. Especially with the addition of fruit when serving.

You can add your preferred milk, other dairy-free milk options include macadamia, hazelnut, almond and rice milk, and by all means try cow’s milk if you’re not dairy-free (always look for good quality though).

This recipe is great for the whole family with omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in chia seeds which help lower risk of heart disease, balance hormones, and play a role in breast cancer prevention.

Research has shown that chia seeds can also positively impact insulin resistance, and the essential fatty acids protect the human brain and heart and help improve the function of the thyroid gland.

You’ll be happy to know that all of chia’s properties – from fibre, vitamin Bs to proteins, are essential, and do a mighty job of balancing your hormones naturally.⁠

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

Chia seeds
Coconut milk
Vanilla powder
Cinnamon

Print

Vanilla Apple Chia Pudding

Perfect make-ahead breakfast and snack.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Servings 2

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1 cup coconut milk or half cup coconut milk and half cup filtered water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 heaped teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 medium green apples sliced or chopped, then stewed in a little water and star anise (optional) for 5 minutes or until soft. Put some stewed apple aside for topping in the morning. Discard the water, and puree by hand or in a food processor

Instructions

• Place the chia seeds in a jar and mix through the coconut milk, vanilla, cinnamon and apple puree
• Pop into the fridge overnight
• Serve in the morning with yoghurt, granola and some reserved stewed apples

Notes

I double this recipe so I have extras for the week, and make up ready- to -go jars for the whole family for breakfast and snacks.

If you know someone who could use some breakfast inspo, please share this recipe with them!

And please take photos and send them to me, or if you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek

Some other breakfast recipes you might like are Layered Rich Chocolate Chia Dessert and Strawberry and Coconut Crumble.

Ok, now back to apples. I really didn’t think we were ready for the change from Summer to Autumn. Surely the kids would mourn the end of summer’s succulent bounty of stonefruits like mangoes, peaches and nectarines, wouldn’t they? Well, no, actually. As much as they love those fruits, they seem to have naturally and instinctively followed the rhythym of the seasons to embrace the sweet flavours provided by Autumn’s apples and pears. Because we try to eat seasonally, the replacement of Summer fruits with Autumn fare follows a natural progression, and we are always ready for the introduction of a new set of tastes. Out with the old, and in with the new. We’ll be naturally craving our mangoes soon enough, but for now, it’s all about the delicious, crispy sweetness and juiciness of the pome fruits.

So cue the ritual of cooking with apples and the endless ways they can be used in recipes. And as the air starts to chill, wrap yourself in a blanket and try this homey Autumn fare by some of my favourite real foood bloggers.

Let’s kick off with my Apple Crumble Slice

Apple Cinnamon Upside Down Cake by Wholefood Nutrition and Wellness

Choc Chia Quinoa Crumble by Naughty Naturopath Mum

Easy Gluten-Free Apple and Fig Crumble by Natural New Age Mum

Apple Berry Custard Crumble by Quirky Cooking

Apple Rhubarb Pie by Wholefood Nutrition and Wellness

Upside Down Apple Cake Puddings by Alexx Stuart

Anyone salivating yet!!!!

Carrot and Apple Cake by The Nourished Psychologist

Apple and Lemon Cinnamon Ginger Quinoa by The Wholefood Mama

Apple and Cinnamon Brown Rice Waffles by Wholefood Nutrition and Wellness

Apple Oat Fritters by Quirky Cooking

Sweet Potato Apple Hash by Barefoot Kitchens

Chia Apple Porridge by Healthy Natural Changes

Cheesy Chicken Apple Balls by Barefoot Kitchens

Turkey Leg Confit with Cranberry Vodka Sauce and Baked Apple by The Wholesome Cook

There you go, now you can put those big bags of apples to good use.

I wonder which recipe will be first cab off the rank? I’d love to know in the comments.

Enjoy!

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